Anadarko’s Mozambique Project Shows Appetite for Natural Gas

Anadarko has cleared this portion of forest near Mocimboa da Praia, Mozambique, as part of preparations for a new onshore drilling site. Mustafah Abdulaziz for The Wall Street Journal Few roads lead to this fishing village on the eastern shores of Africa. Drinking water and electricity are in short supply. Hazards include venomous snakes, malaria-bearing mosquitoes and gun-toting antigovernment rebels. But this is where Anadarko Petroleum wants to build one of the biggest projects ever attempted by a Western energy company. It has pledged to install acres of air-conditioned housing, an airstrip and a port—and to relocate almost 3,000 villagers currently living in mud huts. The search for oil has drawn companies to remote locations throughout the petroleum industry’s history. But Anadarko isn’t here for black gold. The American company is after something more abundant, albeit less lucrative: natural gas located about 30 miles offshore. There is more than […]